The End
by Awkward Ninja
Summary: Ryoga and Ranma settle things. Rated M for violence. A dark fic. No current plans for more of the like.


Disclaimer: What follows below is not to be taken as humorous. It's actually kinda dark. Oh, wait… you mean I'm supposed to say that the characters aren't mine? Um… okay… no, they aren't.

The End

By: Awkward Ninja

Ranma laughed as Ryoga lay in a pile of rubble inside a gaping hole that used to be a wall. It was an abandoned street, the middle of the night, with no clouds in sight. This was the perfect time, place, and atmosphere for what Ranma was going to do.

"Looks like I win again, bacon-butt!" Ranma jeered to his rival from across the street. Ryoga's attempts at revenge over the past few years had helped Ranma stay in form between the occasional bouts of Nerima insanity: kidnappings, disastrous dates, new fiancées, bird people, that kind of stuff. Even so, Ranma was a little tired of it all.

This time, Ranma was going to show Ryoga just how outclassed he was. Ryoga couldn't even guess at how much Ranma had held back as time went on. Ryoga did become stronger over time, that's true, but Ranma's progress simply eclipsed his rival's.

It almost wasn't even fun any more.

No, Ranma would embarrass Ryoga so badly that the lost boy would run off to train for a decade before showing up again.

Ah. Ryoga was emerging from the pile of rubble even as Ranma laughed to himself. Ol' P-Chan's tough, that's for sure.

"Maybe you'd rather fight me in my cursed body? Would it make you feel more manly. Eh, Porky?" Ranma laughed again.

Ryoga began to approach slowly, in a zombie-like gait.

"What's wrong? Afraid?"

Ryoga didn't do anything to indicate that he had heard Ranma.

Ranma glanced down and noticed that Ryoga's steps were leaving impressions in the road between the two combatants. Some kind of variant of the Bakusai Tenketsu, obviously. Strange… Ranma couldn't quite figure out how Ryoga was doing it…

When Ranma looked up again, Ryoga was much closer to Ranma's end of the road than the pigtailed boy expected. If Ranma hadn't been backing away subconsciously, he'd be within Ryoga's reach.

Ryoga looked up at his rival. The drum beat of the battle had changed. Wild music played in his brain and it showed in his eyes. Ryoga continued to advance until he tapped a chunk of rock with his foot. The fanged youth looked at the rock and considered it for a moment before picking it up in one hand and bringing it roughly level to Ranma's head.

Ranma took a fighting stance with a smug grin, ready to dodge whatever attack his rival was about to use.

Ryoga crushed the rock and emitted a high pitched giggle with an evil smile.

Ranma wondered what exactly piggy was playing at.

The moments continued to pass without a single hurled bandanna or umbrella. Where was Ryoga's umbrella, anyway? Oh, yeah, he probably didn't need it anymore.

Ryoga didn't seem to do anything but shamble toward Ranma and occasionally giggle as though he knew some secret that he was about to let Ranma in on.

It seemed from the wild look in Ryoga's eyes that the giggling was more about the "how" than the "what" of the secret.

Ranma had two choices: run or fight.

No, he had to fight. This was the night. This was the time that he would put Ryoga in his place.

Ranma leapt toward Ryoga, admittedly more of a hop since Ryoga was on the verge of the sidewalk. Ranma landed on that edge and unleashed an Amaguriken, raining roughly a hundred hard punches on the fanged one. He flipped into a one handed handstand and drove both ankles into Ryoga's chin, then twisted into a foot sweep.

Ranma's leg stopped cold against Ryoga's. The pigtailed martial artist was dimly aware that his shin hurt as he decided to feint, trying to flip the other way.

Ryoga reached out and took Ranma's ankle. There was a moment, then Ranma had a broken ankle.

Ryoga dragged Ranma into the street as the latter threw kicks and loose debris from the first half of the fight at him.

Then, in the middle of the street, Ryoga's left hand lunged for Ranma's throat amid crazed giggles.

Ranma barely stopped it and needed both hands to do so. He realized that the lost boy could easily crush his throat merely by laying his hand on it. There would be no choking. No chance for escape or distraction if he couldn't get his ankle free, bones be damned.

It was then that an idea occurred to Ryoga. He raised his right foot and rested it lightly on Ranma's abdomen.

This killing lightness almost panicked the pigtailed martial artist.

Ryoga gripped Ranma's wrists with each hand and began to pull.

Ryoga was going to tear Ranma in half! Ranma Saotome was going to die. Ranma Saotome was going to die. This was it. No. No! Ranma could break free. He could… but maybe he wouldn't be torn apart! Wait… No! It would be worse if… POP

Ranma's right shoulder dislocated.

"Damn it Ryoga," Ranma choked as he glanced around deliriously.

Ryoga had heard someone approach but didn't care. The police didn't exist. Nothing existed. Nothing except him and Ranma.

"What are you doing?!" a female voice had gasped shrilly.

Ryoga turned his head toward her in his crazed state. Then he was hit by hardest fist imaginable.

Akane was sobbing and rushing toward him.

He looked down at what he was doing to Ranma and paled further; what would Akane say to him about this situation? What would he have to say to himself? He had always wanted to "kill" Ranma… but he'd never wanted to _kill_ Ranma. Was Ryoga a villain?

Ryoga feinted from his victim and gripped his own head as he tried to process what he was doing: what it was that what he was doing meant. What was he becoming?!

He ran from the scene down a darkened alley even as Akane reached Ranma.

She paused only for a second. No, it was even less, but it took her forever to look down at her battered fiancée.

She knelt beside him and talked in gasps and tears, "C-can you... walk? We- We need an ambulance!"

Ranma pointed to this distance, "Ryoga…"

All was black for a time.

Akane never saw P-Chan again.

Ranma recovered quickly and began to train hard. He tried crazy methods Genma would shy from. He all but married Shampoo in the Nekohanten to get help from Cologne. He even sought Happosai's help.

Then, seven months from that day, he simply wasn't at the dojo.

Akane was afraid that she'd never see Ranma again.

"Rivalries have to be settled. Even best friends can wind up directly opposed," Genma had said one evening. Soun quietly regarded the koi pond.

She made a habit of returning to Ranma's room with a bucket each morning. It became her ritual. It was her one anchor to hope.

Fourteen months from that horrible night, almost to the hour of the fight's end, Ranma-chan walked through the front door, rain falling gently behind her. Nodoka and the Tendo girls crowded around her. Soun and Genma sat in the living room and said nothing.

Ranma looked horrible. She appeared uninjured, but she was dirty, unkempt, and had dark circles under her eyes. Her clothing was smudged with dirt and was covered with telling discolorations and stitching. After initial questions and fretting, which Ranma answered with bravado, she and Akane headed to the bathroom.

"What do you want, Akane," Ranma sighed before turning to face her fiancée as she reached the door to her destination.

"Well, I wanted to splash you for disappearing like that, but I guess that will have to wait," Akane gave a heavy hearted smile.

Ranma said nothing and stared tiredly.

"You found Ryoga…"

"Yes, Akane. I found him. He was waiting for me at Jusenkyo," Ranma sighed as she looked down her stained Chinese shirt.

"And… is he…"

"Ryoga taught me something."

"Yes?"

"Mastery of heavy chi."

With that, Ranma sighed and left Akane in the hallway.

An End

AN 7/29/07

I had trouble deciding what the exact thoughts Ryoga should have at Akane's approach. It isn't exactly unusual that he attack Ranma, after all. I'm not entirely happy with what I went with, but I guess it works decently.


End file.
